Ellis makes biggest switch

Former Jets defensive end joins rival Patriots

Jimmy Golen Associated Press

Published 12:15 am, Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Defensive end Shaun Ellis is switching sides in one of the NFL's most intense rivalries.

The two-time Pro Bowl selection signed with the New England Patriots on Monday after 11 seasons with the Jets. The Patriots also signed another former first-round draft pick, free agent defensive end Andre Carter, who has played 10 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and the Washington Redskins.

Ellis, 34, had become the longest-tenured player on the Jets since he was taken 12th overall with a pick that New York obtained as compensation for letting coach Bill Belichick sign with the Patriots.

"It's the same; I'm just on the other side now," Ellis told reporters in Foxborough, Mass., after the Patriots practiced. "It feels like home. It feels like a place that's all about winning, like they have been. I'm just happy to be a part of it."

The Jets had said that they wanted Ellis back but offered only the veteran minimum of $910,000 and, Ellis said, refused to increase it substantially when he went back to them for a final offer. The Jets had used their first two draft picks to bolster their defensive line, taking Temple defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson in the first round and Hampton nose tackle Kenrick Ellis two rounds later.

"It's the nature of this sport. I accepted it and found a new home," Ellis said. "I just wasn't in their plan. ... I'm a Patriot now. I'm part of this plan."

"I think he deserved the opportunity to retire as a Jet," Scott said at Jets training camp in Florham Park, N.J. "It's one of those weird things. When you hear Shaun Ellis, you associate him with the green and white, but I wish him well and everything other than playing against us."

"The fact that he chose them and all that, like I said before, there's no way I'm going to wish him well," he said Sunday. "There's no chance of that. I wish him to be healthy, but I don't want him to play that well. I know the way he is, too. He's going to be revved up, ready to go and our guys will, too. So, it'll be fun, going against him but, obviously, I've got a great deal of respect for Shaun."

Ellis' decision to sign with New England is an odd twist in the rivalry that was largely spawned by Belichick's decision -- even as he was being promoted in New York -- to quit as "H.C. of the N.Y.J" and instead take over the Patriots. The teams eventually settled on a package of draft picks, the best of which turned out to be Ellis.

Things also got spicy when New England was caught videotaping the Jets' sideline signals; the Jets turned in the Patriots, and they were fined and forced to surrender another first-round draft choice.

More troublesome for the Patriots, though, is the fact that the Jets have beaten them four of the past six times they've played.

"Of course you built up a little kind of hatred toward the Patriots over the 11 years," Ellis said. "I understand what it takes to be champion, and they've been doing it. And I have been wanting to feel that feeling for however long. So, hopefully the time has come."

In their most recent meeting, the Jets beat the Patriots 28-21 in Foxborough in January to advance to the AFC championship game. Ellis had five tackles, and he sacked Tom Brady twice.

"Certainly, Shaun has played a lot of good football against us," Belichick said. "He's been a very productive player -- he's durable and very consistent. It seems like every time we play him, he lines up there and we have a hard time with him. The fact that we had an opportunity to add him to our team, we feel fortunate."